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High places

In truth, Gina had known her whole life that this was where she would find herself. She had fought it, resisting so-called destiny, the inevitability of genetics.

Yet she couldn’t deny the magnetism that drew her to high places. She had travelled the world, searching for mountaintops, seeking another path, but the fire of denial had dwindled.

Standing here now, she marvelled at how right it felt. She toed the platform, scanned the upturned faces below, then stepped off to a roar of delight, her adoring audience rapturous as one more flying Grimaldi swung and twirled above them.

*****

Another story for Friday Fictioneers, hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. Read all the other 100 word stories written in response to this week’s prompt here.

Thank you, Laurie. I watched a few Youtube videos to try to find one that fitted my story, and I could have spent hours watching some of them. Amazing skills and courage. I don’t know how they get up there in the first place, let alone swinging and leaping as they do.

I’m glad you’re happy, Dale. No death jumps for Gina. Some of the videos of trapeze artists I watched to select a good one for my post were heart stopping. At least they use a safety net. Thanks for reading.

I’m not so convinced it’s not another jumper. You left enough ambiguity for the reader to have to choose between two tales – there’s The Wire, – and then there’s the one Grimaldi who didn’t fit, didn’t join the family business. Lovely!

I’m always amazed by how easy it is for two, or more, of us to come up with similar ideas. One story I wrote a year or so ago could have been a sequel to someone else’s story, with the main characters even having the same name. I don’t read anyone else’s before I write mine, as a rule, just to be safe. Isn’t the video amazing! I was enthralled by it too. Glad you liked it, and the story.

Thank you, Amy. I don’t feel very imaginative most of the time. It usually feels like torture trying to come up with an idea. I don’t know how some clever writers can post so early. I’d love to get ideas that quickly. I’m glad you liked the story, and I enjoyed watching the video too.

Ah! Now that would have been interesting. I did briefly consider having Gina abseil down from a skyscraper. I remember one performance like that I saw in Sydney when the 2000 Olympics were on there. Spectacular. Thanks for commenting, Gah.